


Howls in the wind

by a_hapless_occurance



Category: Project Wingman (Video Game)
Genre: Death, Explicit Language, Gun Violence, Mercenaries, Military, Psychological Horror
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:40:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28574667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_hapless_occurance/pseuds/a_hapless_occurance
Summary: Shakal group, a mercenary company, has been hired by the Cascadians to do odd jobs here and there as the newly-freed nation rebuilds. Karine, a long-standing member of the company, is sent to Grimwood forest alongside the rest of Shakal group's special forces team, Krokodil, to find a pair of crashed helicopters. Karine, alongside her squad, 2-1, slowly becomes more and more unnerved as they reason with increasingly unsettling occurrences.
Kudos: 5





	1. Prologue

**GRIMWOOD FOREST, 9 HOURS INTO CURRENT** MISSION  
  
  
“2-1 THIS IS 3-2, WE HAVE CONTACT, ITS-”

The radio went silent. Karine pushed the button on her helmet, speaking into the mic in front of her. “3-2 say again, your last didn’t fully come through.”

No one responded, the line stayed empty. “Fuck, 2-1 we’re moving, fast.”

She looked behind her, checking to make sure everyone was with her. Artyom, Leonid, Michail, and Olezka. The other four members of 2-1. “Olezka, you’re on point, Leonid, load a flare into your launcher.”

“Comrade Karine, what about our glorious NODs, provided by the infallible armory?” Leonid joked.

“Leonid, the only thing the armory can be relied on for is unreliability,” Artyom commented, racking the bolt on his PKP.

“Quiet, 3-2 went dark mid transmission, and Sacha never cuts out early.” Karine shut down the conversation, readying her rifle. Olezka began walking quickly, his head scanning from left to right as the 5 soldiers darted through the trees. His hand shot up, and the squad all stopped in their tracks, falling to their knees. Karine pushed up to Olzeka, staying low and tapping him on the shoulder. Olezka responded quietly. “Something to the north, 100 meters out.” Olzeka nods forwards, indicating a thick set of trees and bushes.

“Movement?” Karine inquired, flicking the safety off her rifle. Olzeka nods once more. Karine levels her rifle forwards, preparing to creep forwards. She takes the first step, placing her foot carefully when suddenly, gunfire. The rest of the squad snaps their weapons up, scanning their surroundings. A shrill scream travels through the forest, and the gunfire ceases.

“Lieutenant?” Michail looks towards Karine. “What in the fucking name of Verskaya was that.”

“I don’t know.” Karine switched the radio on her hip to a different channel, speaking into the mic once more.

“This is 2-1 to all forces, respond.”

“1-1 is alive, we found our wreck, over”

“2-2 is at the rally point, we’ll hold here”

“1-2 Ivan is missing, we are looking for him now”

“3-1, moving to 3-2’s last position”

“Roger, 2-3 respond,” Karine spoke again. Nothing came in response.

“2-1 is close to 2-3’s last, we’ll recce it, over.”

“Michail, that was 2-3, we’re missing two teams now”

“Fuck.” Michail looked down for a second. “Olezka, let's get moving, da?”

"Da Karine.” He rose slightly, creeping forwards slowly, taking care to watch the foliage that had caused the stop. Slowly they approached it, pushing branches out of the way. Karine’s hand went up, gesturing for the squad to spread out. They obeyed, spreading out and moving into the bushes.

“ **FECKING VERSKYAYA** -” Artyom yelled, getting the attention of everyone else. “ **LIEUTENANT, GET THE FUCK OVER HERE** ” Karine sprinted towards the shouts, bursting through a bush, weapon raised. Scanning for what caused Artyom so much stress. She found a pair of eyes staring back, hollow, empty. Artyom was trying his best to not vomit.

“Well,” he retched. “I think we found 2-3” A pair of corpses were disembowelled on the ground. Their plate carriers had been ripped open, blood splattered on nearly every surface in the clearing. 2-3 had been ripped to shreds, literally.

“More like what's left.” Leonid raised his rifle, firing the flare into the air from its underbarrel launcher. Karine covered her eyes as the flare ignited. It sent rays of light piercing through the trees, coating the small clearing 2-1 stood in with shadows. Artyom was shifting his weight from right to left, head jerking as he scanned everywhere but the ground, trying his best to not look at the bodies. He adjusted his pack, tightening the straps on the bulky case. He insisted on wearing it, but the rigid scorpion pack never sat well. 

"Artyom, did you see what did this" Olezka moved into the clearing, taking his finger off his AK's trigger, resting his arm on it as it hung from a strap over his shoulder.

Artyom's head snapped to him. "Do you think I would be standing here if I did? Blyat I would be dumping rounds if I saw the fucking thing that did this to 2-3."

"Point taken, Karine, what the fuck is going on." Olezka turned his head to Karine.

"I don't know, Vandal mentioned none of this, you were at the briefing too, remember?"

"So what, you think federation holdouts did this?" Leonid chimed in, speaking over his shoulder as he watched the perimeter. 

"No, no bullet wounds, the feds use guns, not. . . whatever the fuck did this."  
  
"So then who?"


	2. Briefing

**9 hours earlier, Military base outside Salvermini, Cascadia**

“Alright, everyone take your seats, the briefing is beginning.” Vandal began speaking as he walked into the room, silencing the few conversations that had popped up during the wait.

“As you all know, we’ve been hired by Cascadia. As annoying as it is, the contract pays better than most. Moving on, a pair of helicopters went down in Grimwood forest, and, while the Cascadians are hesitant about using mercenaries instead of their own forces, their military is still in shambles. So it falls to us. And while our liaison is being cagey with specifics, the op looks straightforwards enough1-1, 1-2, you are finding the first helo, should be somewhere north of your drop site. 3-1, 3-2, you are moving to the second crash. We can’t drop you close to it, but it should be about 13 miles southeast of your drop site. 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, you all are our exit plan and QRF. You will advance east of the drop zone, and secure our exfil point. While you are moving, be ready to respond to any calls for support, your pathing takes you between both crash sites. We don't expect hostile contacts, but the Cascadians have told us fuck all, not to mention, something had to make two separate choppers go down. We all know how hard the Feds fought for Grimwood, and in recent times it's garnered a reputation. Now, our clients are offering twice the normal rate, so make sure to give those crash sites an _extra_ good look over. If everyone pulls their weight, this should go over smoothly. So, any questions?"

A pair of hands went up. Sacha, leader of 3-2, and Dimitryev, leader of 1-2.  
  
"Sacha" Vandal turned to the squad leader, nodding towards him.

"Sir, any idea why we are getting paid double?" His question elicited laughs from around the room, and a few murmurs.

"Alright, alright, settle down people." Vandal restored order and began answering. "Two guesses, first, they think we'll be scared of all the rumours around the forest, you know, moving trees, shadowy figures, stuff like that. Luckily both choppers went down in a semi-untouched part of Grimwood, plus Krokodil doesn't scare easily. Second guess? Those choppers were carrying something important, something they don't want normal grunts getting their hands on. The extra pay could be for discretion, hush money, assurance we get everything home intact, redacted kinda shit." Sacha just nodded in response.

"Dimitryev"

"Sir, if we aren't expecting hostiles, why does the brief say bring full combat gear?" Dimitryev stood up as he spoke.

"Simple, the Cascadians didn't technically tell us there _wouldn't_ be hostile contacts, plus they are still finding Fed holdouts further into the calamity-affected zones, I don't want my special operations group getting wiped because some bureaucrat decided we didn't need to know about whatever ends up being in that forest. It pays to be prepared."

"Understood, sir." Dimitryev sat down.

"Alright, if no one else has questions, you are all dismissed. Gear up, choppers leave in 4 hours." With that, Vandal bowed out of the room.

Karine walked out, making her way towards 2-1's ready room. Which, in reality, was a somewhat spacious supply closet they had claimed. It worked well enough, it had lockers and cabinets. Leonid had even scavenged a table and bench. She opened the door and walked in, getting to work. She began packing magazines for her rifle, filing through the shared cabinet and finding a few boxes of ammunition. The first to join her was Artyom, the machinegunner. Artyom was the newest member of 2-1, and by far the youngest. He was 19, youngest in the whole company. He walked in quietly, nodding to Karine. 

"Excited?" He asked.

"For the pay? Yeah. For walking through a burned out forest? Not one bit." Karine responded, still focusing on loading her magazines.

"True, might just end up being boring but eh, I'm not one to complain." Artyom shrugged and opened up his locker. He removed a large box, a scorpion backpack, his most recent purchase. 

"Tell me again why you got that thing?" Karine looked up for a second.

"Simple, you can pack 550 rounds into it, doesn't make the weapon much heavier."  
  
"And?"

"And it looks cool as hell." Artyom sheepishly replied.

"Just have someone else bring an extra box or two, I don't want you going dry because you refuse to carry ammunition in a sensible way." Artyom nodded, joining her and beginning to load the massive belt-feeder with rounds. Next in were Leonid and Michail. The two were basically inseparable. They burst through the door, singing a song together as they walked in. Karine smirked and looked over as they entered.

"Why so happy?"

"Because Tovarisch Lieutenant, we are getting paid!" Leonid announced. Karine just gave a small laugh.

"Well then, don't let me stand in your way, just make sure to get ready"

"Yes yes, we will." Leonid left Michail's side, opening his locker and removing his plate carrier and rig. He put it on, beginning to load it up. He slid grenades into pouches, grabbing one after the other. Michail also opened his locker, removing an AK and beginning to clean it. Finally, Olezka walked in. Olezka was a quiet man, with eyes like a hawk. No one said anything, simply nodding to acknowledge him as he walked in and began loading up. Karine just continued getting ready, packing mags into her carrier, spare ammo into her pack, and a pair of first aid kits as insurance. 

The squad was ready with 15 minutes to spare, granted multiple hours were wasted by Leonid and Michail, who insisted on distracting the group again and again. They arrived at the transport helicopters that were taking them out, lining up. All five of them reported in, and filed into the chopper, sitting down. Next stop, Grimwood forest.


	3. Contact

**GRIMWOOD FOREST, 10 HOURS INTO CURRENT MISSION**

Karine breathed as the flare slowly died out. She looked at the bodies once more.

"Anyone pack body bags?" She turned, looking to each member. They all shook their heads.

"Alright, Olezka, drop a beacon and mark our approximate position on map, we can't stay, but we can't leave them here." Olezka nodded, placing a device on the ground.

"All set." He replied curtly.

"You good to be on point again?" He nodded once more, turning and continuing his lead.

"Artyom, behind me, Leonid, Michail, you two get our flanks, something is out here, keep your eyes open and maintain visual contact with me or Olezka, understood?"

"Yes Ma'am"

"Da Lieutenant"

"Then let's get to moving." Karine followed behind Olezka closely, keying her radio as she went.

"This is 2-1, we found 2-3, both Ivanov and Sasha are dead, no sign of what killed them, over" 

A single response came. "2-2 acknowledges, out"

Karine shook her head, going back to focusing on scanning the wilderness. Another cry seeped through the trees, this time closer. In unison, 2-1 stopped, dropping to their knees."

"Olez, is that close?" Karine quietly asked.

"No, at least another 1,000 meters. I can't tell what it is though."

"Not one of ours? An animal maybe?"

"Nothing I've heard before." Karine nodded, turning back around towards the rest of the group.

"Everyone, heads on a swivel, whatever's ahead is still unknown. Be. Careful." Turning back around, she raised her rifle, tracing the horizon as she went. Her eyes kept darting as shapes formed in the dark. She steadied herself, taking deep breaths. Two teams were down, and she had no clue where the others were. There was only one option, get to the rally point, 27 miles away. Her train of thought was disrupted as gunfire sounded once more, close. She hit the deck, searching around. Her eyes landed on Michail, who was stood up and firing wildly. Karine darted towards him, sliding to a stop a couple of meters back. 

"Michail, report contact!" The soldier did not respond, ejecting a magazine and crouching down.

"Michail! Report!" Karine walked closer.

"Something, its out there, 50 meters out, I saw it." Michail kept his eyes on the forest, scanning left to right, gun raised.

"Saw what?"

"It. Its. . . Fucking Verskaya, I don't know."

"Describe it."

"Tall, it has eyes, I think"

"what?"

"It looked over at me, I think we locked eyes, it darted off."

"What did it look like Michail."

"Lieutenant I don't know, I just saw its eyes."

"Alright, Artyom! Leonid! Olezka, on me, we're pushing this way, Michail saw something." The team formed up and cautiously began their advance. Slowly, they pushed towards the spot where Michail had spotted it. They fanned out, scanning the area. None of them saw anything. Olezka was hunched over, studying the ground.

"Tracks, footprints, old and definitely ours, two of them, heading west quickly." Olezka put his head up, looking into the horizon.

"No, no, it wasn't human, its _eyes_ weren't human." Michail was becoming antsier by the second, his head snapping from side to side, watching.

"Then Michail, tovarishch, you saw nothing. There are no tracks here, no twigs snapped, no traces of whatever you saw."

"Olez, you sure?" Karine walked up beside him.

"Positive."

"Alright, Michail, you're in the center now, I'll take his spot, Olezka, take us to the rally point."

2-1 walked away, slowly continuing their hike as the darkness became thicker and thicker.

"Leonid, pop another flare." Karine ordered. No response was given other than a dull thump as yet again, a grenade was sent sailing into the sky. 

Light pierced through the trees, illuminating a wide radius. On the edge of her vision, Karine could have swore she saw something react, darting out of the light. She trained her rifle on that spot, walking sideways as she tracked it

No more movement came, and she shook it off.


	4. Engage

**GRIMWOOD FOREST, 13 HOURS INTO CURRENT MISSION**

  
  
"2-1 come in, this is 2-2, where are you, over?"

"about 1 hour off the rally point, why? Over."

"1-1 is here, and we haven't heard anything from the other groups, over"

"nothing? Over."

"affirm, no communication from 1-2 or 3-1, over."

"Fuck, alright, keep 1-1 tight, we're on our way, just hold on."

"affirm, 2-2 out."

"Olezka, we gotta get to the rally point ASAP, alright?" Karine shouted towards the front of their formation.

"Understood." Olezka responded. The group's pace increased slightly, but they still were cautious. Artyom kept turning around, scanning behind them. Movement was slow. Michail was still freaking out, jumping at shadows. Leonid wasn't doing much better, though at the least he was quiet. Olezka was, as always, silent. Karine got a glimpse of his face every now and then when he turned around. It was emotionless. As for Karine herself, she was doing fine. Sure something was, for all she knew, hunting them. And sure 2-1 was the only team not at the rally point, (that they knew of course) but it would all be fine. Olezka would lead them to the rally point, Michail would calm down, and everything would be just fine. 

They continued walking, deep into the night. The darkness was oppressive. No moon was out tonight, and they could barely see 15 feet in front of them. Karine lowered her night vision goggles onto her face, flicking them on. They slowly turned on, giving her a fuzzy image of what was ahead. It was better than being blind. She looked over to her right, and saw that the others had had the same idea. 

"2-1?" A voice came from up ahead. They all froze. Olezka looked back and Karine nodded.

"Yeah, 1-1?" Olezka hesitantly responded.

"Fuck are we glad to see you, yeah, its 1-1" With this, a trio of soldiers walked out from the trees. Karine stood up, walking towards one. 

"Kravchenko, you bastard."

"Karine, still alive I see." The two clasped arms, walking into a hug. 

"Compare notes?" Kravchenko asked, releasing Karine.

"Yes please, 2-1, form up, 360 watch while me and Krav talk"

"1-1, you do the same."

"first of all, what are you doing away from the rally point? What happened to 2-2?"

"They're a couple minutes behind us, as for why we aren't at the rally point, radio's aren't reaching. Can't call for evac."

"You tried the long range?"

"Yeah, just got static."

"Fuck, where is 1-2?"

"Last we saw them was at the crash site, they took one route to the rally point, we took another. One of their men was missing, they went searching"

"Well, we found 2-3, and I'm pretty sure 3-2 is dead."

"Pretty sure?"

"3-2 contacted us, got cut off mid-sentence, they were yelling about having contact, didn't get much more than that."

"So, 2-3 and 3-2 are down, 1-2 is missing, 3-1 as well."

"Fuck."

"Indeed."

"So, what are we going to do about it?" Karine shifted. Nothing about this was good.

"Chances are they'll send birds out in the morning if we don't report in, so, dig in at the rally point?"

"And if they don't?"

"Then we deal, search the forests for residences, get our bearings, find our way out, make contact, anything."

Karine nodded, just as 2-2 arrived, out of breath. Artyom looked towards them, eyes wide as he almost shot.

"What's the fucking rush!"

2-2 responded between wheezes. 

"Something. . . behind us. . . we heard it."

"Between us and the rally point?"

"Yes."

Another howl filled the air. 

"Lieutenant"

"Yes Olez?"

"That one's close."


	5. Transit

**ABOVE GRIMWOOD FOREST, 5 HOURS INTO CURRENT MISSION.**

"HEY KARINE, REMIND ME WHY I SIGNED UP?"

"WHAT?"

"I SAID, HEY KARINE, REMIND ME WHY I SIGNED UP!" Leonid yelled again, trying to yell over the sound of the helicopter. Karine just pointed to her ear and shrugged. Whatever Leonid was asking probably wasn't important anyway. She checked her watch. 19:03. Leaning back, Karine groaned. 30 more minutes in transit. Next to her, Sasha, part of 2-3, leaned over.

"Bored?"

"Who isn't?"

"Da, da, ready for it?"

"It?"

"The mission, more boredom, walking."

"Does it matter if I am?"

Sasha laughed. "Not really, no. So, 2-1 doing anything once the mission is over?"

"Probably the same thing we always do, Olezka disappears, Leonid and Michail get drunk, and Artyom goes to sleep early, you?"

"Ivanov and I have a pool going, it is getting resolved after in the pub, you want in?"

"What are the bets?"

"1-1 has fifty on EMP, 3-1 has 20 on Mothman, they always bet on Mothman, 3-2 has 100 on fed holdouts, 1-2 has 25 on mechanical failure"

"And you?"

"Oh no, I'm handling the bets, don't have one myself."

"Alright, put 2-1 down for 50 on weather-related crashes."

"Boring, at least 3-1 has flair."

"Pretty sure Mothman ain't real."

"And the weather is, sure," Sasha responds in a mocking tone.

"Whatever." Karine turned back to looking forwards. Just 30 more minutes.  
  
  
The helicopter's ramp went down, and it's passengers flooded out. 2-1, 2-2 and 2-3 all spread out from the landing zone. 

"Alright, we split up, cover more ground, get to the rally point by 03:00, Sun's going down so prep your NODs and flares. 1 and 3 should be done with their objectives and make their way to the rally point by 05:00, and we'll be outbound before the sun breaks. Understood?" Karine nodded as Ivanov explained the plan. Simple plan, simple op, simple money.

"2-1, we are moving! Column on me, let's go!" The team formed up and they sprinted into the trees, getting out of the open. As they put distance between them and the landing zone, they slowed. Karine flicked her radio on to broadcast on the shared channel.

"2-1 is on the move, over."

"Acknowledged 2-1, 3-1 and 3-2 are one minute from the drop zone, over." 

"1-1 has landed, setting out now, over."

So far, so good.


	6. Fear

**GRIMWOOD FOREST, 14 HOURS INTO CURRENT MISSION**

The mercenaries closed ranks, weapons raised. Artyom fell to one knee, scanning the horizon with his PKP. Kravchenko ushered the newly arrived men of 2-2 into the center of the group, raising his weapon. The forest is silent, not even the wind is blowing. Karine's night vision goggles flicker and die off, leaving her in darkness.

"Fuck, my NODs died" Someone quietly says.

"Mine too" Leonid adds.

The group tightens even more, essentially standing back to back as they all remove their goggles from their eyes. Karine silently curses. In the distance, the faintest of noises. The entire group snaps towards it, staring into the darkness. Karine can feel the sweat rolling down her face. Her hands begin to shake. As she looks out into the distance, she becomes more and more unnerved. Her eyes are coated in shadows, constantly darting as she sees movement just out of sight. Her eyes lock onto something. A shadow, unmoving, perfectly still. She feels frozen, as if something is staring back at her. Her voice trembled, barely able to make a sound. Just as the void moves, she is able to croak something out.

"It's here," Her voice no more than a whisper. She hears someone snap around, pouches and items clunking together as they turn. Flashes of light blind her as a rifle fires over her shoulder. Her ears begin to ring as her vision is coated in splotches of light. She stumbles backwards as the void disappears from her vision. Shakily, she flicks the safety off her rifle and joins in, firing blindly into the trees. People around her shout, but the words fall on dead ears. Her hands are running on autopilot now. Eject the mag, grab a fresh one, slam it home and fire again. A shrill cry sounds, echoing and bouncing from tree to tree, assaulting the group again and again. It sounds as if some demented beast is cackling, a sharp trill. Karine tightens her grip on her rifle, clenching down on it with every ounce of might she can muster. The forest is filled with gunfire as the mercenaries fire blindly. 

"CONTACT LEFT" Leonid shouts as he fires.

"ITS IN FRONT OF ME!" Someone else shouts. Karine's head darts around, following the reports of her comrades. All she can ever see is darkness. The cry sounds once more, a taunting call as it circles the group. Karine's head darts towards the source, but it is already gone. Heavy footfalls surround the group. Relentlessly advancing amidst the hail of fire. She looks around, trying to see anything, _hear_ anything. It's everywhere, it's surrounding them, circling them, calling to them. Her head stops dead in its tracks, the void. There it is. She snaps her rifle towards it, squeezing the trigger. Her eyes clamp shut as the muzzle brightly flashes, and when she open's them, the void is gone. The footfalls cease, no more cackles call out. 

"Krokodil, Cease fire!" Kravchenko shouts, placing his hand on someone's rifle and lowing it. "Wait, listen." Silence falls over the group. No one dares move a muscle. The wind slowly picks up again, branches rustling as they rub against each other. 

"Everyone," Kravchenko's voice is a whisper, just barely audible. "on three, we run to the rally point and don't turn back." No one is confident enough to respond, keeping their lips sealed as they listen.

"One." Karine takes a deep breath in, clenching her eyes shut.

"Two." She breathes out, opening her eyes.

"Three." They burst into action, turning and sprinting. Karine pushes her body as hard as she can, pumping her arms as she goes. The moment they set off, the footfalls return. She focuses, keeping her head tilted towards the ground, planning out every step as best she can. She can hear Artyom panting as he tries to keep up. More flashes penetrate through the trees as sporadic gunshots sound. "No, you idiots, run." She thinks. Another trill shriek, faster this time, higher pitched. "It's right behind me. It's right behind me. It's right behind me." Her mind races. She can feel its breath on her neck. Her spine jitters as something reaches out and brushes against her back, like claws gently caressing her skin. "Don't turn, just run." Her heart is racing, she can feel her legs begging to give in. She resists, leaping over a fallen tree. In front of her, she can see Olezka. She wants to cry out for help, but all that comes out are wheezes. 

She dodges a bush, nearly slipping as her foot catches on an exposed root. She can see the rally point now, a clearing in the distance, a trio of flares slowly dying off. "Just push. Just push. Just push." Her heart is racing. Her lungs are crying in pain. Just a hundred more meters. Already she can see others turning around. Raising their weapons as they enter the clearing. She watches as they scan the horizon, jerking this way and that. She bursts through the tree line, nearly collapsing. She turns, falling back onto her knees as she raises her rifle. Staring back at her is nothing but emptiness. Her breathing slows as she watches. Artyom enters the clearing, sliding to a halt and then flipping onto his stomach, deploying his PKP's bipod. The last few come through, collapsing onto the ground. Nothing is following them.

It was right behind her, she heard it, she had felt it, where was it. Slowly, Karine stood up, her legs shaking. 

"Kravchenko, are you alive?" She asked, trying her best to maintain a solid voice.

An answer shakily came. "Da, I think, is everyone here?" Karine looked around, checking. Everyone from 2-1 was present.

"Mine are here." She answered.

"Dima, what about yours then?" Kravchenko turned once more, locking eyes with another man.

"Igor and Pavel are here." Dima, the leader of 2-2 snapped out, being short even in the face of death.

"Then we dig in comrades. Hopefully, rescue will come in the morning. For now though? Dig a hole, start a fire, and keep your eyes peeled."

With that, Karine grabbed out a shovel from her pack and got to work. Leonid and Michail quickly followed her lead, beginning to excavate a dugout while Artyom and Olezka watched over them. It was nearly an hour before they were done. The five of them sat around a lamp, hidden beneath a tarp. Artyom's hand lazily strummed a balalaika, clunkily playing an old folk song. Olezka's head moved from side to side in tune with the beat as he watched out of the dugout, scanning the horizon. For once, no one complained about his habit. 

"Leonid, you doing alright?" Karine asked.

"Da, da Tovarishch Lieutenant, I am fine. You should be asking those trees if they are alright!" He mimics shooting, punctuating his statement.

"Did anyone see it?" One by one, they all shake their heads. Until. that is, it arrives at Michail. He cautiously nods up and down. Karine presses further.

"Where?"

"Everywhere." He whispers, his eyes staring off. The dugout becomes silent, Artyom ceases playing. The silence persists for minutes before anyone says something.

"Well, we are going to need to pull watches. I'll take the first one, Olez, you will take the second. I'll wake you up when it's your turn." Karine stated, slowly shifting towards the exit. Olezka nodded, and the group slowly drifted off to sleep. Karine dropped most of her stuff, taking off her backpack and helmet. Moving on muscle memory, she took the night vision goggles off, attaching them to a head strap and placing them on. She walked out of the dugout and slid them down, flicking the on switch. She was about to switch them back off, remembering their failure earlier when, to her surprise, they crackled on. Her vision was coated green. She began making her rounds, walking the clearing and watching the forest. 


	7. Rest

**GRIMWOOD FOREST, 17 HOURS INTO CURRENT MISSION.**

Karine's head darted towards one of the dugouts in the clearing as something rustled. A figure clambered out of 1-1s tent.

"Woah, Friendly here." He stated, raising his hands. Karine had snapped her rifle towards him. Nerves, muscle memory. She chuckled, lowering it.

"Sorry, Krav."

"Don't worry Karine. We're all on edge." 

"You can say that again." Karine turned back towards the forest as Kravchenko walked towards her.

"Your boys alright?" He asked, catching up and walking in step with her.

"Most of them. Olezka is Olezka, you could kill his parents and not tell how he was feeling. Leonid? He's dealing."

"And the other two?"

"Artyom is new, hasn't seen much. He'll be alright as long as I am. Michail on the other hand?" Kravchenko raised an eyebrow. "He's. . . different. Distant, haunted." Kravchenko gave a dry laugh. "Who isn't haunted right now?"

"Not like that though. He saw something, earlier, before we met up. He's been freaking ever since. I've never seen him like this."

"Do you think he saw it?"

"How can we know? Has anyone? What if there's more?" Karine's pace slowed.

"Guns drove whatever it was off, we'll be fine."

"That a statement or a hope." Kravchenko stopped in his tracks, thinking.

"I'm still deciding that for myself."

"Well then, your two alright?"

"Yeah, Radmila's distant but coping, Adrian's doing the best he can. The kid wasn't made for combat, he's a damn good shot and can follow orders well, but this kinda stuff gets to him."

"Well, I guess that's all we can ask for." Karine shrugged.

"Hey, your NODs, they're working?" Kravchenko inquired, noticing Karine's goggles.

"Apparently, I put them on without thinking."

"So then what happened? Did you replace the batteries?"

"No, I just flicked em on. I understand it as much as you do."

"So you think that. . . _thing_. . . messed with em?" 

"Krav, I don't know. I felt this thing, I felt its breath and then I turned and it was gone. I mean, how many rounds did we dump in that circle? 500? 600? Nothing could dodge that much fire while still moving. I don't understand this thing, it fucking terrifies me and I have no clue what it is."

"So let's chalk it up to a maybe then." Krav broke a smile, trying his best to put Karine at ease.

"yeah. . . maybe." They walked in silence for the rest of Karine's watch.

  
Another hour went by and she checked her watch as she walked back to the dugout. 0500. Still enough time to get a little sleep. Slowly and quietly, she pulled up the tarp, sliding in and taking off her plate carrier. She tapped Olezka, who slowly stood up and walked out, having been sleeping in his gear. She began to drift off to sleep, but her mind was stopped. She could faintly hear something. Muttering, quietly. It was nonsensical. 

"Basement, click, run, join, here, here, close"

An endless stream of words, seemingly random. Michail shuddered in his sleep as he spoke. Karine tried her best to ignore it. She didn't get much sleep.


End file.
